Free Fishies! Dutch Technicians Build Mobile Aquarium Driven by Fish

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Ever feel bad for your goldfish? Ever think it’s unfair that this natural born swimmer is confined to a basketball-sized tank or consider how the novelty of the pirate skeleton in there has probably worn off? Well, grieve no longer, because the future may be bright for your under-stimulated aquarium resident. Dutch technicians have constructed a mobile fish tank which is actually driven by a fish. The tech-design firm Studio Diip put together the prototype seen above that they hope could “liberate fish all over the world”. They have named the apparatus “Fish on Wheels.”

The prototype consists of a small tank affixed to a remote controlled wheelbase with a flat surface. There are two single-board controllers in the base of the fish buggy which are connected to a standard webcam. The webcam is positioned directly above the tank and points down at the swimming fish so it can track where the fish is at any given moment. Based on the fish’s location in the tank, the webcam sends signals to the wheel base to travel in that direction. So as soon as Flipper moves towards the front wall, the “Fish on Wheels” will move in that direction.

The video above shows how the often spatially-limited goldfish can explore a larger area. (Studio Diip)

“Hopefully this invention will encourage more development in enhanced pet mobility, so pet animals can travel the world more freely,” says Studio Diip. Theoretically the “Fish on Wheels” could travel into your cat’s living quarters and mess with her for a change.

Could this lead to a terrestrial Finding Nemo sequel? And could applying thruster technology to the “Fish on Wheels” mean a third installment of said franchise in space? No hypothetical price tag exists for the “Fish on Wheels”, but quickly assess your current sympathy for aquarium-bound critters and tell us how much you’d pay to mobilize your goldfish.